Computed axial tomography evidence of left atrial enlargement: a predictor of elevated pulmonary capillary wedge pressure in pulmonary hypertension

Z Safdar, MF Katz, AE FrostDivision of Pulmonary-Critical Care Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USABackground: One of the commonest causes of pulmonary hypertension (PH) is left heart dysfunction associated with elevated pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP). In contrast, the pathology of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) originates in the pulmonary vascular bed. Accurate diagnosis of PAH requires right heart catheterization (RHC) with normal PCWP. This study examines the role of computed tomography of the chest (CT chest) in evaluating left atrial (LA) size as an indicator of elevated PCWP in patients undergoing PH evaluation.Methods: CT chest and RHC data were reviewed in 37 subjects at the Baylor PH Center. Both subjective estimates and objective measurements of left atrial size from the CT chest were recorded separately by 3 investigators. Patients were categorized as Group I (small-normal LA) and Group II (large LA) and RHC results compared.The objective and subjective measurements were compared by receiver operator characteristic (ROC).Results: The mean PCWP was 12 ± 6 mmHg in Group I and 21 ± 7 mmHg in Group II (P = 0.001). The estimated LA area was 19.4 ± 4.9 cm2 in Group I and 39.9 ± 7.6 cm2 in Group II (mean ± SD; P < 0.001). The estimated LA area, corrected for the chest wall length, was 0.78 ± 0.19 cm2 and 1.65 ± 0.26 cm2 in Groups I and II, respectively (P < 0.001). Significant correlations were found between uncorrected PCWP and LA area (R = 0.45, P = 0.005), corrected PCWP and LA area (R = 0.47, P = 0.003), and the subjective observer impression of LA enlargement and measured PCWP (R = 0.51, P = 0.001).Conclusion: In this pilot study, enlarged LA area on the CT chest was associated with an elevated PCWP on RHC. For patients undergoing PH evaluation, increased LA area on CT chest could suggest left heart dysfunction in patients as a possible cause of PH.Keywords: pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, diastolic dysfunction, right heart catheterization, radiology, left atrial are

Monitoring of particulate matter concentrations at high altitude ecosystems of Pakistan and China

Particulate matter exhibits different behavior with altitude. A comparative analysis was carried out to monitor PM1, PM2.5, PM4, PM10 and PMTotal at elevations above 3000 m in both China and Pakistan. Real time monitoring of PM was carried out at both sites using a DustTrak DRX (model 8533, TSI Inc.) for 24 hours each. In Pakistan, the average value of PMTotal was 415 ± 16 μg/m3 while in China the value was considerably lower i.e. 110 ± 57 μg/m3. The 24-hour mean values recorded were well above the WHO recommended limit of 25 μg/m3. These results indicate that, even at sites some distance from anthropogenic sources, PM concentrations still pose a health risk

Comparative Analysis of V-Akt Murine Thymoma Viral Oncogene Homolog 3 (AKT3) Gene between Cow and Buffalo Reveals Substantial Differences for Mastitis

AKT3 gene is a constituent of the serine/threonine protein kinase family and plays a crucial role in synthesis of milk fats and cholesterol by regulating activity of the sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP). AKT3 is highly conserved in mammals and its expression levels during the lactation periods of cattle are markedly increased. AKT3 is highly expressed in the intestine followed by mammary gland and it is also expressed in immune cells. It is involved in the TLR pathways as effectively as proinflammatory cytokines. The aims of this study were to investigate the sequences differences between buffalo and cow. Our results showed that there were substantial differences between buffalo and cow in some exons and noteworthy differences of the gene size in different regions. We also identified the important consensus sequence motifs, variation in 2000 upstream of ATG, substantial difference in the “3′UTR” region, and miRNA association in the buffalo sequences compared with the cow. In addition, genetic analyses, such as gene structure, phylogenetic tree, position of different motifs, and functional domains, were performed to establish their correlation with other species. This may indicate that a buffalo breed has potential resistance to disease, environment changes, and airborne microorganisms and some good production and reproductive traits

CO2 capture using membrane contactors: a systematic literature review

With fossil fuel being the major source of energy, CO2 emission levels need to be reduced to a minimal amount namely from anthropogenic sources. Energy consumption is expected to rise by 48% in the next 30 years, and global warming is becoming an alarming issue which needs to be addressed on a thorough technical basis. Nonetheless, exploring CO2 capture using membrane contactor technology has shown great potential to be applied and utilised by industry to deal with post- and pre-combustion of CO2. A systematic review has been conducted to analyse and assess CO2 removal using membrane contactors for capturing techniques in industrial processes. The review began with a total of 2650 papers, which were obtained from three major databases, and then were excluded down to a final number of 525 papers following a defined set of criteria. The results showed that hollow fibre membranes have demonstrated popularity, as well as the use of amine solvents for CO2 removal. This current systematic review in CO2 removal and capture is an important milestone in the acknowledgment of up to date research with the potential to serve as a benchmark databank for further research in similar areas of work. This study provides the first systematic enquiry in the evidence to research further sustainable methods to capture and separate CO2

Phalaris minor control, resistance development and strategies for integrated management of resistance to fenoxaprop-ethyl

Phalaris minor (Littleseed canary grass) is a very important and annual weed of winter cereal crops. It is a very competitive weed of wheat, oat and barley crops in Pakistan. Usually, three aryloxyphenoxypropionate herbicides, fenoxaprop-P-ethyl, diclofop-methyl and clodinafop-propargyl are used as chemical weed control against different grassy weeds like P. minor, Avena sativa and Cyperus rotundus L. This review describes fenoxaprop-ethyl, a selective chemical herbicide used to control P. minor in wheat crop. High production of wheat is associated with its continuous use. But this practice enhances the development of resistant biotypes of P. minor. Different management approaches like preference of mechanical weeding over chemical weed control, integration of competitive varietal selection, crop rotation and herbicide rotation can be long duration strategies of resistance management in P. minor. However, tillage method, planting time, method of herbicide application, optimum dose, higher seed rate, early sowing, bed planting, stale seed bed and zero tillage are short duration resistance management strategies. Use of water extracts of herbicidal potential (allelopathic) plants can be effective integrated management of herbicide resistant against P. minor in wheat and for eco-friendly and sustainable weed management.Key words: Control, fenoxaprop-ethyl, management, Phalaris minor, resistance, wheat

Assessment of ethnopharmacological potential of Cyperus difformis L. in terms of its’ phytochemistry, antibacterial, antioxidant and anticancer attributes

The present research was carried out on Cyperus difformis L., commonly found sedge weed in rice field to evaluate its’ ethnopharmacological potential in terms of phytochemical constituents, antibacterial, antioxidant and anticancer activities. FTIR spectroscopy of powdered material of plant parts, rhizome (with roots), leaves and flowers showed the presence of three main chemical groups, i.e. -OH (alcohol), -C=O (carbonyl) and -CO-O-CO (anhydride). The phytochemical composition of n-Hexane, chloroform and ethanol crude extracts of same parts analysed by GC-MS and n-Hexane extract of various parts indicated 14 compounds with highest (10) in flowers extract followed by six compounds in chloroform and five in ethanol extracts of plant parts. The antibacterial activity was assessed against Salmonella enterica, E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus by using well diffusion method and similar resistance was shown by n-Hexane and ethanol extracts while noticeable inhibition by chloroform extract, especially by leaves showing zone of inhibition, 16.17±0.52mm, comparable with Gentamycin 18±0.11mm. The antioxidant activity in terms of DPPH Scavenging activity was found higher in n-Hexane and chloroform extracts, especially leaves i.e., 54.6±0.43 & 43.45±0.53 as compared to that of ethanol extracts. The percentage activity was increased with an increase of concentration of extracts. Antiproliferative activity checked by SRB proliferative assay and the crude extracts of plant parts of C. difformis showed good activity against A2780 and HCT116 cancer cells in three days. C. difformis having therapeutic action as well as its’ ethnopharmacological history, being used as fodder, it may be recommended good herbal fodder for the dairy animals

SCREENING OF HERBICIDES FOR WEED MANAGEMENT IN TRANSPLANTED RICE

ABSTRACT (2005) . All of the herbicidal treatments did not differ significantly from hand weeding during both the years for this character. In terms of paddy yield, hand weeding gave the highest grain yield but remained statistically at par with certain herbicides. Welchlore and declore gave lower yield for the year 2004 and 2005, respectively. Control (weedy check) produced the lowest yield during both the years

Population sensitivity of acute flaccid paralysis and environmental surveillance for serotype 1 poliovirus in Pakistan: an observational study.

BACKGROUND: To support poliomyelitis eradication in Pakistan, environmental surveillance (ES) of wastewater has been expanded alongside surveillance for acute flaccid paralysis (AFP). ES is a relatively new method of surveillance, and the population sensitivity of detecting poliovirus within endemic settings requires estimation. METHODS: Data for wild serotype 1 poliovirus from AFP and ES from January 2011 to September 2015 from 14 districts in Pakistan were analysed using a multi-state model framework. This framework was used to estimate the sensitivity of poliovirus detection from each surveillance source and parameters such as the duration of infection within a community. RESULTS: The location and timing of poliomyelitis cases showed spatial and temporal variability. The sensitivity of AFP surveillance to detect serotype 1 poliovirus infection in a district and its neighbours per month was on average 30.0% (95% CI 24.8-35.8) and increased with the incidence of poliomyelitis cases. The average population sensitivity of a single environmental sample was 59.4% (95% CI 55.4-63.0), with significant variation in site-specific estimates (median varied from 33.3-79.2%). The combined population sensitivity of environmental and AFP surveillance in a given month was on average 98.1% (95% CI 97.2-98.7), assuming four samples per month for each site. CONCLUSIONS: ES can be a highly sensitive supplement to AFP surveillance in areas with converging sewage systems. As ES for poliovirus is expanded, it will be important to identify factors associated with variation in site sensitivity, leading to improved site selection and surveillance system performance

Machine learning approach to predict quality parameters for bacterial consortium-treated hospital wastewater and phytotoxicity assessment on radish, cauliflower, hot pepper, rice and wheat crops

Raw hospital wastewater is a source of excessive heavy metals and pharmaceutical pollutants. In water-stressed countries such as Pakistan, the practice of unsafe reuse by local farmers for crop irrigation is of major concern. In our previous work, we developed a low-cost bacterial consortium wastewater treatment method. Here, in a two-part study, we first aimed to find what physico-chemical parameters were the most important for differentiating consortium-treated and untreated wastewater for its safe reuse. This was achieved using a Kruskal–Wallis test on a suite of physico-chemical measurements to find those parameters which were differentially abundant between consortium-treated and untreated wastewater. The differentially abundant parameters were then input to a Random Forest classifier. The classifier showed that ‘turbidity’ was the most influential parameter for predicting biotreatment. In the second part of our study, we wanted to know if the consortium-treated wastewater was safe for crop irrigation. We therefore carried out a plant growth experiment using a range of popular crop plants in Pakistan (Radish, Cauliflower, Hot pepper, Rice and Wheat), which were grown using irrigation from consortium-treated and untreated hospital wastewater at a range of dilutions (turbidity levels) and performed a phytotoxicity assessment. Our results showed an increasing trend in germination indices and a decreasing one in phytotoxicity indices in plants after irrigation with consortium-treated hospital wastewater (at each dilution/turbidity measure). The comparative study of growth between plants showed the following trend: Cauliflower > Radish > Wheat > Rice > Hot pepper. Cauliflower was the most adaptive plant (PI: −0.28, −0.13, −0.16, −0.06) for the treated hospital wastewater, while hot pepper was susceptible for reuse; hence, we conclude that bacterial consortium-treated hospital wastewater is safe for reuse for the irrigation of cauliflower, radish, wheat and rice. We further conclude that turbidity is the most influential parameter for predicting bio-treatment efficiency prior to water reuse. This method, therefore, could represent a low-cost, low-tech and safe means for farmers to grow crops in water stressed areas